Through the first quarter of the season, the Golden State Warriors have shown they can maintain the pace of the 72-10 record set by the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls.
We're about to see if the Warriors can match the Bulls' capacity for revenge.
One of the hallmarks of that Bulls team was that once the players realized they were on their way to a historic season, they absolutely punished teams that had the audacity to beat them.
The Orlando Magic handed the Bulls their first loss six games into the season. The Bulls let them off the hook, beating them by nine points the next time they played. After that, the Bulls were all about annihilation. The Seattle SuperSonics gave Chicago loss No. 2 on Nov. 26. When they had the rematch in January, the Bulls won 113-87.
The Bulls didn't have to wait as long to avenge their third loss. The Indiana Pacers got 'em on Dec. 26, then had the misfortune of being their next opponent three days later: Bulls 120, Pacers 93. The New York Knicks dealt the Bulls their worst loss of the season 104-72, on March 10. The next time they played, Chicago won 107-86.
In all, the schedule gave the Bulls a rematch opportunity for six of their 10 losses. The Bulls' average margin of victory the next time they played an opponent that beat them was 20 points.
The Warriors get the Milwaukee Bucks in their building Friday, only six days after the Bucks dealt them their first loss of the season.
The Warriors took note of the way the Bucks acted near the end of that game and immediately afterward. The Warriors have had plenty to say about it, both before and after they demolished the Phoenix Suns Wednesday night.
The real test is what they do about it. If they're going to duplicate or surpass the standards set by the 1995-96 Bulls, a 20-point victory is in order.